Where Did Cross-Platform Gaming Come From?

The concept of cross-play emerged in the early 2000s, with some Dreamcast titles allowing players to team up online regardless of their region or whether they were playing on the console or PC. However, these early attempts were limited due to the closed nature of most consoles at the time. PCs, with their inherently open architecture, were the primary platform for cross-play experiences.

The landscape began to change, however, with the introduction of the seventh-generation consoles (PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii), which were designed with special game mechanics and robust online capabilities in mind. This game dev shift paved the way for more widespread cross-play adoption. 

The Switch to Cross-Platform Development

The true turning point for cross-play came in the mid-2010s with the meteoric rise of games like Minecraft and Fortnite. These titles, with their focus on online social interaction, demonstrated the immense potential of cross-play in expanding player bases. 

Today, cross-platform play is no longer a novelty. Publishers, even those who traditionally only went after narrow niches, like 2D and 3D mobile game development and specific mobile platforms, increasingly embrace cross-play.

The best game development engines, like Unity and Unreal, now offer increasingly robust cross-platform development tools, making it easier and more cost-effective for publishers to reach wider audiences. This massively benefits creators by increasing their potential player base.

Benefits of Cross-Platform Game Development

Financial Efficiency

• Reduced development costs and simultaneous launch. Developing a single codebase for a cross-platform game saves significant costs in programming, art, and design by eliminating the need for separate versions. This also allows for a consolidated launch strategy, reaching a wider audience at once and maximizing return on investment. 
• Simplified future expansion. Adding new platforms becomes easier and cheaper with a cross-platform development approach (especially since all the best game engines are now competing to offer the best cross-platform development kit.) The core code is already built, so the focus shifts to optimizing visuals and controls for each new platform. 

Reduced Maintenance Costs

• Streamlined updates. Updating a cross-platform game requires patching a single codebase, which significantly reduces the development and testing resources compared to maintaining separate title versions. 
• Unified player base. In any cross-platform development project, the key goal is to achieve seamless gameplay across all platforms, eliminating the need for separate servers and matchmaking systems. This unified approach benefits both players (consistent experience, easy matchmaking) and publishers (simplified maintenance).

Increased Audience Reach

• Larger player base. By reaching players across multiple platforms, publishers can tap into a larger pool of potential customers, boosting sales and in-game revenue. 
• Enhanced social interaction. The bigger, more vibrant, and inclusive community helps build a stronger brand image for the publisher and encourages long-term player engagement. 
• Easy market management. Since a single codebase simplifies the management of different market versions of the game, the developers only need to focus on content localization (translation) instead of adapting core gameplay mechanics for each region. 

Better Matchmaking and Leaderboards

Cross-play brings several benefits for multiplayer games, particularly in terms of matchmaking and leaderboards:

• Increased player pool. It expands the pool of potential players, leading to faster matchmaking times and more balanced competition. 
• Centralized data handling. With a single codebase and unified servers, player data (like statistics and achievements) becomes centralized. This eases the creation and management of leaderboards, offering a more accurate and unified view of player performance across all platforms. 

More Effectual Marketing Pushes

Unlike native development, cross-platform engineering also streamlines marketing efforts:

• Centralized marketing. Developers can focus on a single, unified marketing campaign that targets a broader audience across all platforms. This enables the publishers to avoid creating campaigns for each separate game platform, reducing costs and maximizing marketing effectiveness. 

In conclusion, there are clear incentives for publishers to create a cross-platform game. The most significant advantages are potential cost savings, a streamlined development cycle, and the ability to reach a wider audience and build a more engaged community around the game.

The Best Cross-Platform Game Engine: Which Engine Allows You to Develop a PC, Console, or Mobile Game That Can Be Equally as Effective on Any Platform?

Unity Game Engine Cross-Platform Strengths

• Broad platform support. Unity is an extremely popular game engine that boasts impressive support for a wide range of platforms.
• Asset store advantage. Unity is a game development platform with a genuinely large asset store. It offers a wealth of models, textures, and code to enable cross-platform compatibility. 

Unreal Engine’s Cross-Platform Power

• Engine-level optimization. While Unreal development requires more experience, the engine also provides many tools and features specifically designed to optimize games for cross-platform play. 
• Scalability for different needs. While it can be harder to develop a cross-platform game with Unreal, it allows us to scale graphics and features relatively easily. This means you can launch a visually stunning experience for consoles and PCs and a more optimized version for mobile devices to get more traction on Google Play, App Store, etc.
• Versatility. While traditionally known for its PC and console prowess, Unreal Engine has made significant strides in mobile development, too. With continued improvements in this sphere, it’s becoming an increasingly flexible engine—a perfect option for creating high-quality console, PC, mobile, or cross-platform games.

Challenges Companies May Face During Cross-Platform Game Development

Notwithstanding the numerous advantages of cross-platform development, it’s not without its challenges. Here’s a closer look at some potential drawbacks game publishers must always take into account:

Platform-Specific Nuances

• Non-native experience. Optimizing a game for multiple platforms can sometimes lead to a homogenized experience that doesn’t fully utilize the strengths of any specific platform. Controls, visuals, and sound design might feel like a compromise between different systems, lacking the polish of a native title. 
• Limited feature integration. Even though game engines strive to provide all-encompassing cross-platform capabilities, unique features of individual platforms (like motion controls on the Nintendo Switch or touchscreen functionalities on mobile devices) might be difficult or impossible to fully integrate into a cross-platform game. Publishers may need to choose between sacrificing these features or creating a less streamlined experience with platform-specific controls. 

Balancing the Playing Field

• Hardware disparity. Significant differences in processing power, graphics capabilities, and input methods between platforms (PC vs. consoles vs. mobile) can create balancing issues in cross-play. Players on stronger platforms might have an inherent advantage over those on weaker systems, leading to frustration. 

These challenges can be mitigated with careful design and advanced game development strategies. For a truly optimized user experience across platforms, developers can leverage platform-specific control schemes and graphical settings. However, achieving this balance between customization and core gameplay fidelity necessitates extensive expertise in custom game development for various platforms.

By researching these potential drawbacks and implementing creative solutions, publishers can capitalize on the many benefits of cross-platform development while ensuring a high-quality gaming experience for all players.

When Should a Publisher Build a Cross-Platform Title, and When Is This Type of Game Development the Most Cost-Effective?

While cross-platform development offers a wealth of advantages, it’s not a one-size-fits-all solution. Here’s a breakdown of situations where cross-platform development shines for publishers:

Genre and Target Audience

• Genre focus. Games with a strong emphasis on accessibility, strategy, simulation, or casual experiences often benefit greatly from a wider player base. 
• Broad audience appeal. Titles with broad appeal that target a wide demographic are ideal candidates for cross-platform development. Reaching players on consoles, PCs, and mobile devices expands the potential audience and increases the likelihood of commercial success. 

Business Model and Monetization

• Freemium model. For games with a freemium monetization model (free to play with optional in-app purchases), cross-platform development allows for a larger user base to engage with microtransactions and in-game purchases, potentially leading to higher overall revenue.
• Focus on online engagement. Games that heavily rely on online features like multiplayer battles, competitive leaderboards, or social interaction benefit significantly from cross-play. A larger player pool leads to a bigger online community and increases player engagement. 

Development Constraints and Time-to-Market

• Limited budget and resources. Publishers with smaller budgets can start using cross-platform development approaches to create a single title that reaches multiple platforms, maximizing their return on investment. 
• Faster all-around time-to-market. In a cross-platform game development project, the time it takes to bring a game to market on various platforms can be shortened as a single codebase can be adapted for different platforms more quickly than developing separate versions. 

However, cross-platform development might not be the best choice for all games. Consider these factors:

• Particular features. Titles that hinge on platform-specific game features (like motion controls or touchscreen mechanics) might be better suited as platform exclusives.
• Technical challenges. Games with very demanding graphics or complex mechanics might be difficult to optimize for weaker platforms within a cross-platform approach.

By carefully evaluating these factors in the game development process, publishers can make informed decisions about when cross-platform development is the ideal strategy to maximize their reach, revenue, and player engagement.

Why Partner with Vendors That Provide Custom and Cross-Platform Game Development Services?

Achieving cross-platform success requires significant expertise. While the perks are substantial — ranging from reaching a broader audience to enhancing development efficiency — the technical challenges can be formidable. Therefore, partnering with seasoned cross-platform game developers is often the best strategy. These professionals deeply understand the complexities of custom game development across various platforms and can ensure seamless performance optimization for each one.

Stepico has been a reliable guide to many publishers on the cross-platform odyssey. Our extensive experience navigating the ever-evolving gaming landscape ensures we can expertly guide you. Through close collaboration, we’ll identify the ideal platforms for your game and meticulously optimize it for peak performance on each, from high-end PCs to budget phones.  We don’t just optimize, we craft exceptional design. Your game will feel native to each platform while maintaining a cohesive cross-platform experience.  And if you need to extend your reach within an existing native development project, our proven game porting services can help you too. The result? An innovative masterpiece that transcends the limitations of any single platform, capable of captivating a global audience. Are you ready to unlock the full potential of your groundbreaking cross-platform game concept? Contact us today, and let’s turn your vision into reality.

What You Can Do For Free

Yes, competent promotion is not only about money. If you want to reach maximum effect with your ads, you need to take a few steps before getting started. And the first of them is a competent presentation of your project.

ASO In The App Store And Google Play

Before inviting users to the download page, make sure that you have correctly filled it. It will help you to present the game and also generate free user traffic. Do not forget that many players are looking for new entertainment using keywords. And if there are enough of them in the description, then the chances that a new user will find your game increases.

The correctly filled card contains:

• keywords in title and description;
• localized text;
• captivating screenshots and video trailers.

Remember that the game is greeted precisely by the screenshots. Even if your gameplay is super addicting, players won’t know about it if they don’t download the game. So choose the most spectacular and colorful frames that catch your eye. And be sure to add a video.

Do not use enhanced content. The picture must fully convey what the player will see in the game. Otherwise, you will face an unpleasant situation from the “expectation/reality” series – and you will receive a sea of negative reviews. Of course, your game must be great. So make sure that you choose the right game dev company.

By the way, about the reviews! Make sure that you motivate users to rate the game and share their experiences. The higher the rating of the game in the store and the more positive comments, the more confidence it can inspire in new players. The main thing is that the reviews must be honest.

Update the description regularly to highlight the latest updates and features in the game. Also, be sure to check the texts and screenshots for relevance.

Landing Page

An effective landing page is another way to increase interest in your game. Unlike a product card, here, you will have a full-fledged space to attract attention. You can make a free version with a minimum of content or create a full-fledged website with bright animation and modern features. It all depends on your budget and time.

If you want your landing page to be as effective as possible, make sure it includes:

• Links to the App Store and Google Play.
• Exciting game trailer and gameplay.
• Call to action + download bonuses.
• Reviews from specialized publications, if you have them.
• Links to your communities in social networks.

You can use this page to collect player contact information and make them subscribe to the newsletter. Or involve people in communities so that they are the first to know about updates. Such landing pages are especially relevant for projects that are still in development. If the game is not released on some platform, then you can collect players in the waiting list through a google form. Or give access to audience thought a closed test tool, for example Test Flight for AppStore. With their help, you can generate interest in the game even before the release. And don’t forget SEO optimization. Utilizing an seo checker like Serpstat can significantly enhance your game’s visibility online, ensuring that your promotional efforts reach the right audience through optimized web content and keywords, driving organic traffic to your game’s landing page or social media profiles.

Communities On Social Networks

It is a powerful tool for organic traffic. Create a Facebook group, Youtube channel, Twitter, Tik-Tok, or Instagram profile and use your creativity. You can attract players for free with viral content, memes, jokes, or colorful screenshots. If you create quality content that is fun and engaging, people will share it for free!

You can also use contests and activities to increase your social media reach. You can use in-game items and currency as prizes, which will be another magnet for attracting new players. Once you’ve won 500 gold coins, you probably want to download the game and see what you can spend it on, right?

Plus, there are many tools on social media to boost organic reach. Arrange a challenge, write posts on discussion topics – and then your publications will attract users without paid promotion.

Let’s Talk About Paid Methods

All the methods listed in the previous section are must-haves for promotion. They not only save the budget but also serve as a base for paid activities. If you have a high-quality landing page, a well-designed app card in the store, and a community on social networks, then you will have a place to direct your traffic. So, before launching Sponsored Ads, prepare a platform for your audience.

Target Ads

This is the easiest and most obvious way for mobile applications. A smartphone is always at hand. So users can go directly to the application page and download the app after seeing an ad on social networks. The shorter the customer journey, the more effective the advertising. The main advantage of targeted advertising is that you can select an audience by interest, use retargeting and study the portraits of your potential players.

Video Advertising Inside Games

Usually, mobile gamers play more than one game. So advertising some games within others is a very effective strategy. You can place an advertisement in a free version of the same game or use another game with similar mechanics and meanings. Alternatively, you can use your other projects for cross-promo.

Bloggers And Streamers

Twitch and other streaming services are becoming more and more popular. Today people can hear about the new game from the broadcasts of their favorite blogger or watch the walkthrough on YouTube. Find bloggers talking about games in your genre and request a review or ad.

Thematic Resources

And, finally, another way to promote is to order an article or post on a thematic resource dedicated to games. Online gaming publications and social media groups with an active audience will help you increase your reach and draw attention to your project.

Don’t Want To Promote Video Games Yourself? Trust The Professionals!

The Stepico company can not only offer custom full cycle game development, but also care about the promotion, publishing and Live operations of the game. We will prepare the entire base for advertising your project, help you make impressive art and trailers, create a selling landing page, and give all the recommendations for an effective promotion of your game on any platform. Do you want to create a game or promote it? Then check our services now.

It’s hard to imagine the modern game industry without indie projects. It is not a genre or a direction, but everyone understands what an indie game is. However, the boundaries of this game development form are rapidly blurring. Today “indie” is not only “made for a penny by a team of enthusiasts” but also popular projects made by professional teams. So what makes indie games different? Let’s figure it out.

What Is Indie Game Development

The main characteristic of an indie game is independent development. That means that large studios like EA, Ubisoft, or Rockstar are not in charge of the process. You can create an indie game alone, but often it is done by small teams of 5-10 people.

So, “indie” means independent of major publishers. And from their financial support, of course, but difficulties make the process even more challenging. Despite the high competition and lack of support from big studios, indie games have their advantages.

• You can embody any ideas: even the most non-standard and risky ones. Actually, in the absence of large budgets, this will be the main feature. Indie games catch on not with ultra-modern graphics and complex mechanics, but mainly with stories.
• You don’t need to look at the market standards and trends and organize audience research. Indie developers can do what they like.
• There are no studio bosses, no deadlines. So you can work at your tempo, especially if you are working alone. You don’t need to rush or sacrifice cool ideas to get to the next checkpoint.

It’s getting easier and easier to develop your own game. While you are reading this text, probably a dozen more indie horrors or shooters have appeared. So, if you want to create your own indie game, the idea must be at least original.

How to make a successful indie game

The main thing in an indie project is not to stop halfway. There is no one-size-fits-all recipe for a successful indie game, but these tips will help you bring your idea to reality.

Choose quality, not quantity. Studios with large teams can easily manage several projects at once. But indie developers should focus all resources on one thing.

All you need is a great idea. Yes, we already talked about this in the last paragraph. But, believe us, this is very important! When there are no cool technical capabilities, you need to rely on creativity. A strong script and original approach to gameplay are the keys.

Don’t forget about promotion. Release trailers, make press releases, post information about your game wherever possible, and remember that there are never too many ads.

Think about how to keep people interested in the game. You can use new endings, bonus materials, and additional information about the game world. All these features will help maintain interest in the game and increase the percent of replaying.

Monetize your game. In-app purchases, ads, and cross-promotion are ways to monetize almost any game. However, you need to do it carefully. Otherwise, there is a risk of a low score on Metacritic, failed sales, and oblivion.

The game is like a child. It is necessary to maintain it (patch), listen to feedback (communicate with the players), and remind everyone how good it is. And do not be confused that you are selling your child because, after all, this is just a game. Create a thematic community on Reddit or a group on Facebook, where you can collect feedback and tell about updates.

By the way, outsourcing is a great idea! If you feel that your skills in, for example, drawing, are only enough for the image of a Christmas tree (and you drew a star cruiser), then feel free to seek help from professional artists. Or look for good composers. Or find those who will write you the code. Or connect with the Stepico team because we can help you at any stage! If you want to learn more about our services, check this page.

How to form an Indie game development team

We have already mentioned outsourcing, so now is the time to talk about those without whom you can’t create the game. The minimal crew should include:

• game designer
• artist
• programmer
• sound engineer
• tester

Good news: you can do all these roles alone. And by the way, in 99.9% of cases, you will have to be the project manager. You will explain tasks to the team, set deadlines, and control everything that can be controlled.

Indie game development costs

The budget for an indie game can be microscopic, or you can expand it to enormous proportions. In the first case, the authors usually do everything alone or with a team of friends. You can use free engines, write music in Garage Band and do all stages on your own. The results are always different. You can make an indie masterpiece: like To the Moon, Minecraft, or Five Nights at Freddy’s. Or you can make another clone of games that are gathering dust on the virtual shelves.

In the second case, you can invest your funds and finance in a full-cycle development. If you don’t have enough money, you can find people interested in your game on crowdfunding sites: Patreon, Indiegogo, and CrowdFunder.

The most important thing is to be clear about your vision and follow it.

Let’s create!

Indie game development is an incredible adventure in which you can bring your brightest, wildest, and craziest ideas to life. There can be a lot of obstacles, but this is not a reason to stop! Go ahead, and Stepico will be your reliable partner when you need resources at any stage of creating your unique indie game.

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Games are no longer just entertainment. Today it is a rapidly developing industry in which, according to Statista, almost a third of the world’s population is involved. People of all ages regularly play on mobile devices, consoles, and PCs. Esports tournaments with huge budgets are held all over the world. And virtual worlds have transformed from a gaming space into a place where you can meet with friends.

There is no doubt that the gaming industry will grow. But in which direction? To find out, we’ve collected the latest gaming trends in this article.

1: Cloud Gaming Trends

Source: Global Web IndexPreviously, gamers’ experience was limited by two factors: the device and its technical capabilities. Companies created games for specific platforms. And the quality directly depended on the characteristics of the console, smartphone, or PC. Today, the number of exclusives has decreased. Of course, unique games remain, both for consoles and PCs. But you can play a game of any genre on anything. And cloud technologies allow you to run resource-intensive applications on any hardware.

It is beneficial not only for the players but also for the developers. Cloud technologies will help remove technical limits and reach a wider audience. Users won’t have to buy high-quality gaming PCs or consoles to play. There will be no need to download or install games.

The key to the successful development of this area is the fast Internet. Today, image quality suffers when transferring data. But with the improvement of technology, this problem will disappear. Just imagine: you will have an opportunity to play AAA games from even the simplest devices! And that brings us to the next trend.

2: Mobile game development

Source: StatistaMobile games today differ from projects for consoles or PCs, but the boundaries are rapidly blurring. Video game design companies adapt popular titles for smartphones and develop new mobile projects that are becoming no less popular.

About 2.2 billion people all over the world play games on smartphones. And there is no difference between gender. According to MMA Global, 51% of mobile players are women, and 49% are men. Unlike PCs or consoles, this type of gaming is popular with people of all ages and 14% of active players are from 16 to 24 years old, while  24% are from 35 to 44 and 20% – from 45 to 54. So mobile games are not entertainment just for teenagers. Everyone plays them.

Your smartphone is always at hand, so you can play everywhere: on the way to work, at home, or when you are waiting in the queue. The capabilities of smartphones are improving every year, so games for mobile devices are becoming more challenging and fun. And fast data and new communication standards will open up endless possibilities for gaming. So mobile games will be actively improved and developed in the future.

3: Multiplayer games

During the COVID-19 pandemic, people were looking for other ways to communicate. And multiplayer online games have played an important role in socialization. Unable to meet friends in a park or cafe, people began to spend more time playing games. They began competing against each other in Fortnite, getting together as a team in Call of Duty or DOTA 2, or spending time in numerous MMORPGs.

The latest genre is especially interesting from the point of view of the development of the industry. Unlike battles – solo or team – in MMORPGs, you can spend long hours rather than short sessions. These are separate worlds that you can explore, contacting other players. Previously, such games were relevant only for the PC. But with the development of technology, it became possible to play them on smartphones.

However, Battle Royale games are not losing ground either. The genre began to gain popularity in 2017, and the number of fans of this format continues to grow. In games like this, everyone fights against everyone until there is only one winner left. Battles take place on colorful maps with resources, and each new game starts from scratch.

One of the most popular games in the genre is PUBG. Only on Steam, this game had over 444 thousand concurrent players in August 2021. And that’s not counting the players on consoles and the mobile version, where indicators are much higher. More than 50 million people played the PUBG mobile daily in Q3 2020. Another 70 million have played the Chinese version of Game for Peace, which accounts for over 50% of PUBG Mobile’s revenues. This game is free-to-play, and according to the latest data, 730 million users have installed it, and the number of daily active players is 30 million.

Fortnite is another popular Battle Royale game. It differs from PUBG in its cartoonish graphics and the ability to create objects right on the battlefield. In September 2021, up to 4 million people played Fortnite simultaneously on all platforms every day.

The ability to compete not with NPCs, but with other people has always attracted players. Cooperative modes and the ability to share the game with friends appeared long before modern online battles. And if we consider that today most of life flows online, the direction of multiplayer games will develop actively.

4: Gambling and e-Sports

Esports has played a huge role in the interest in online multiplayer games. Why did we make it a separate trend? Because to compete, games must have special mechanics. And if you want to create a new Counter-Strike, Call of Duty, or DOTA2, you need to think about the possibilities for battle at the idea stage.

After numerous lockdowns, people who were unable to attend their favorite matches switched to eSports. If in 2019 the audience of people who watched cybersport events at least once a month was about 440 million, then by the end of 2021 this number may increase to 550 million.

International DOTA2 Championship

Major game championships are held annually, and the prize pools are amazing. For example, The International 2021 tournament, which took place from October 7 to 17 in Bucharest, had a prize pool of $40 million. Thanks to such high-profile events, gaming tournaments have long ceased to be something underground. Today, a DOTA2 match can easily compete with a football or basketball championship in views.

Esports have come into play in a variety of genres. For example, summoners war is neither a shooter nor a MOBA, but tournaments are held in this game. Competitions are also held on mobile platforms: PUBG Mobile, Clash Royale, Clash of Clans, Garena Free Fire, etc.

So games with a lot of competitive potential are a promising niche. If you have ideas for such projects, you can always contact Stepico for full-cycle development.

5: Blurring the boundaries between games and movies

The graphics in games are becoming more realistic. If you’ve seen the trailer for the new Forza Horizon 5 or played one of the latest releases from top game design companies, then you probably understand what we are talking about. Unlike movies, game worlds are not limited by the laws of physics. You can choose any setting and create anything from an underwater laboratory or a lost space station to a medieval city inhabited by fantastic creatures.

Twenty years ago, it was difficult to imagine the level of realism that modern games have reached. Imagine what awaits us in another twenty years! Endless possibilities allow you to create whole open worlds that live by their laws. No matter how fascinating the universe of the film is, you cannot immerse yourself in it. And in games anything is possible.

But along with open worlds, there is another genre that blurs the lines between games and movies. It is a genre of interactive film where the player makes choices that influence the plot. Interestingly, both industries are developing in this direction. Interactive films and TV series appear, and gaming studios regularly release cinematic games.

For example, projects like Until Dawn, Detroit Become Human, and the entire series of Dark Pictures. These games are focused not on the process but the story. You need to make choices that will affect the fate of the characters and lead you to one of several endings. This synthesis of film and game provides deep immersion in the story. You don’t need special skills to play, and this is a great way to relax.

6: More Remakes, Reboots and Nostalgia

When so many new things appear, we feel a longing for the old. Some people miss pixel arcades, others remember the games they played in their childhood. It is not surprising that the industry responds quickly to such trends. Today, you can find modern platformers that create the illusion of games from the past, and once-popular titles are getting a new wave of popularity with remakes and remasters.

People are willing to pay to re-play their favorite games in an updated version: Mafia definitive edition, Demon Souls, GTA etc. Not only games with outdated graphics receive the update, but also those that look modern. For example, TES: Skyrim, released in 2011, or Witcher 3, a game that has long remained at the top of the ratings of the most realistic projects, will soon receive an improvement in graphics.

Also, the interest in the old games in their original form does not fade away. WoW made a classic version for players dissatisfied with modern game updates. On Xbox, thanks to backward compatibility, you can play Perfect Dark, Black, Morrowind, and other games. And the extended version of Nintendo Switch Online includes Nintendo 64 and Sega games from the 16-bit era.

7: VR and AR game development

From super realistic graphics, it’s easy to go full immersion. And virtual reality technology can provide a similar experience. It is available today, but it has not yet become something commonplace. Today VR is more entertainment than a full-fledged element of gameplay. But in the future, with the development of technology, the situation may change.

The demand for virtual reality has grown during the pandemic. People, unable to experience the familiar sensations in everyday life, began to pay more attention to the game worlds and new opportunities for immersion in them. 360-degree video content and high-quality graphics create a sense of presence and make the gameplay more vivid and immersive.

​​With VR, you can control an airplane in Microsoft Flight Simulator or fly on a spaceship in Star Wars: Squadrons. Or you can destroy enemies in Half-Life: Alyx and in the incredibly stylish SUPERHOT shooter. Many games get a VR version or update: for example, Resident Evil 4 or Dota 2.

Today people are more likely to go to VR clubs rather than buy these devices. But, if we look into the past, we will remember that the passion for games also began with arcade machines. So, VR may very soon become a part of our everyday reality.

What does the future of gaming hold for us?

Games have become an integral part of everyday life. We play on smartphones, consoles, and PCs, spend time with friends in exciting online battles and dive into game worlds that are increasingly difficult to distinguish from reality. And if you don’t want to play by yourself, you can watch the stream. Thanks to broadcasts on Twitch and videos on YouTube, even those who do not have the equipment to play will find out about great projects.

Source: Global Web Index

How will the industry develop further? We believe that in the future:

• games will become even more realistic;
• most multiplayer games will move to VR
• there will be a great emphasis on personalization;
• lots high-quality projects of the past will sooner or later receive an upgrade;
• VR and AR technologies will become part of everyday user experience;
• there will be more competitive games to watch;
• the genre of interactive cinematic games will be actively developed;
• retro style will become one of the most popular trends;
• there will be more monetization opportunities – for example, blockchain technologies.

Our team is constantly exploring new possibilities for creating exciting game projects. We use modern technologies and improve standards and development processes to create impressive projects in our game design portfolio. If you want, you can learn more about our services.

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